Coronavirus Concerns Close All Northshore Schools

BOTHELL, WA — All three dozen campuses in the Northshore School District will close Thursday, for up to two weeks, as the district monitors potential coronavirus risks among students, staff members and families, the district announced Wednesday night.

The district pointed to a recent two-day closure at Bothell High School and "multiple individuals" across the district who were in self-quarantine after possible exposure to a Kirkland senior home linked to several COVID-19 cases and a majority deaths related to the virus in Washington.

Related: Washington Coronavirus: 39 Cases In King, Snohomish; 10 Deaths

In a letter to families Wednesday, the school officials noted the district-wide absentee rate was at 20 percent and said 26 schools were affected by direct or indirect exposure to the virus.

While public health officials are not recommending school closures, they re-iterated in a press conference Wednesday afternoon that school districts have the authority to make decisions based on their community's specific needs.

From Superintendent Michelle Reid's letter:

"The new public health recommendations to slow the spread of coronavirus we received following today’s press conference indicate that those people at higher risk should stay home and away from large groups of people as much as possible; e.g., those with weakened immunity, pregnancy and those who are 60 and over. As we are a veteran staff in Northshore, we have employees who fall into all of these categories. The conservative number calculated for those 60 and over alone is an impact of more than 500 or over 16 percent of our staff, including those in instruction, in food services, and those driving buses full of students. We also have numerous staff that have other identified high risk factors making the safe operation of our schools untenable."

The district said it would communicate plans Thursday and Friday to transition instruction from physical classrooms to an online learning plan. Reid said her staff was working to develop a student support center to assist families with elementary-aged students who do not have childcare options.

Read the school district's full letter to Northshore families here.